This invention relates to a simple hanging parasol, particularly to one provided with an upper ring and a lower ring to be automatically fitting with each other in expanding or collapsing a canopy in conjunction with a elastic pulling member provided between the lower ring and one of spreaders, so as to conveniently handle the parasol.
A conventional hanging parasol shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, includes a hanging shank 1 and a parasol body 2 supported by the hanging shank 1. Then the shank has a fix base 11 fixed on top of the shank 1 and a slide sleeve 12 fitting movably around the shank 1 below the fix base 11. The shank 1 has its lower end fixed firmly on the ground or the like. The parasol body 2 consists of a plurality of ribs 21, and a plurality of spreaders 22, an upper ring 24, and a lower ring 25 and a canopy 23 supported on the ribs 21. The ribs 21, 21a have their upper ends pivotally connected to the upper ring 24 positioned in the center of the canopy 23 in radial condition, and the upper ring 24 has its lower end connected with a conical insert rod 241, which has a stop lip 2410 formed in an intermediate portion. The lower ring 25 is located under the upper ring 24 and pivotally connected with inner ends of the spreaders 22, 22a in a radial condition. The spreaders 22, 22a have their outer ends pivotally connected to intermediate portions of the ribs 21, 22a. The lower ring 25 has a tubular base 251 formed to extend upward from an upper end, and the tubular base 251 may be inserted by or separated from the insert rod 241 of the upper ring 24 in case of expanding or collapsing the parasol body 2.
One of the ribs 21a and one of the spreaders 22a intercross with each other and pivotally connected with each other, with the outer end of the rib 21a pivotally connected with the slide sleeve 12 of the shank 1, and with the outer end of the spreader 22a is pivotally connected with the fix base 11, as shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, the rib 21a and the spreader 22a combine the parasol body 2 with the shank 1, and prop up the whole weight of the parasol together.
In using the conventional parasol, if the slide sleeve 12 is moved manually down along the shank 1 from an expanded condition shown in FIG. 1 to a collapsed condition shown in FIG. 3, the rib 21a may forces the other ribs 21 and all the spreaders 22, 22a swing down to move nearer to the shank 1 and finally lie along the shank 1 in a collapsed condition (as shown in FIG. 3).
On the contrary, if the slide sleeve 12 is manually moved up along the hanging shank 1 from the collapsed condition to the expanded condition, forcing the tubular base 251 insert in the insert base 241, with the upper end of the tubular base 251 contacting (or stopped by) the stop lip 2410 to let the canopy 23 expanded on the ribs 21, 21a. Then the conventional hanging parasol is completely expanded for use, as shown in FIG. 1.
However, the conventional hanging parasol has been found to have a drawback that the upper ring 24 and the lower ring 25 often cannot align to each other as to fit with each other in an expanding course. Then another person has to help correct the upper and the lower ring 24 and 25 to align to each other in fitting with each other. Thus, a user cannot use the conventional hanging parasol without assistance of another person, quite inconvenient.
The cause of the drawback of the conventional hanging parasol is to be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the whole weight of the conventional hanging parasol is supported only one of the ribs 21a and one of the spreaders 22a connected with the hanging shank 1, in a suspended condition. So when the slide sleeve 12 is moved nearer to the upper end of the shank 1 and to expand the canopy 23, the whole parasol is located at the farthest from the shank 1, in other words, the whole parasol is at the farthest distance from the shank 1, and all the ribs 21 and all the spreaders 22 may sag to make the upper ring 24 and the lower ring 25 all tilted for an angle. Then the lower ring 25 is supported by the spreader 22A in a horizontal condition, and liable to tilt outward from the shank 1. But the upper ring 24 is supported by the sloped rib 21a, and liable to tilt toward the shank 1 as shown in FIG. 4A. So the tilting directions of the upper and the lower ring 24 and 25 are opposite to each other, impossible to the both 24 and 25 fit with each there. However, a user has to slide up the slide sleeve 12 with one hand and to grip the shank 1 with the other hand, impossible to adjust the upper and the lower rings 24 and 25. Then the user needs another person to help adjust them to fit with each other as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, making up an annoying problem.
This invention has been devised to offer a simple hanging parasol expansible by only one person, with an upper and a lower ring automatically fitting with each other and thus convenient to use.
The feature of the invention is an elastic pulling member provided to have its outer end hooked with one spreader pivotally connected to a fix base fixed on top of a hanging shank. When the parasol is expanded from a collapsed condition to an expanded condition by manually moving up a slide sleeve fitted movable around the hanging shank, the slide sleeve moves up that spreader with other spreaders and all ribs supporting a canopy, and the ribs have inner ends pivotally connected to an upper ring located at the center of the canopy and intermediate portions pivotally connected with outer ends of the spreaders expanded to the expanded condition, with help of the elastic pulling member automatically resiliently let a tubular member of a lower ring pivotally connected with inner ends of all spreaders to fit with a conical insert rod of the upper ring so as to keep the parasol in the expanded condition stably.